Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov speaks at the 52nd Security Conference in Munich, Germany, Saturday Feb. 13, 2016. AP Photo
MOSCOW – Agence France-Presse
Russia said on Feb. 15 that Turkey’s shelling of Syrian Kurdish Democratic Union Party(PYD) and Syrian regime positions in the north of the country was a “provocative” action.
“Starting from February 13, Turkish artillery concentrated in border areas is carrying out massive strikes on Syrian towns recently freed from terrorists by regime forces and Kurdish militia,” a statement by the Russian foreign ministry said.
“There have been many civilians killed and injured, infrastructure and residential houses destroyed,” it said.
“Moscow expresses its most serious concern about aggressive actions by Turkish authorities against a neighboring state,” the statement said.
“Russia will support discussion of this issue in the UN Security council for a clear assessment of the provocative line pursued by Ankara, which is creating a threat to peace and security in the Middle East and beyond.”
Turkey on Feb. 15 was shelling for the third day positions of Kurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG), the military wing of the PYD, which Ankara has dubbed as a terrorist organization and an extension of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK).
Moscow has been carrying out a campaign to support the Syrian army’s offensive since September and also has struck a tighter alliance with the Syrian Kurds who opened an office in Moscow last week.
Ankara has vowed to keep carrying out the strikes despite criticism from Western allies in the US-led coalition, with the spiraling disagreements making the prospects of a ceasefire set to start next month increasingly unlikely.